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Created to foster a more equitable and consistent approach to service and support within the Faculty of Arts and Science, the Strategy for Excellence, Equity, and Enrichment in Service (SEEES) project has evolved into operationalizing three key projects focused on staff support and community building in alignment with the FAS Strategic Plan.

“SEEES provided FAS with the opportunity to identify and articulate major challenges and opportunities facing the faculty in terms of administrative support.  Key outcomes included an assessment of the current levels of service and support and the impact of growing demands on departments.  We identified opportunities to streamline service delivery, improve communications, and critical areas for process improvement,” says Warren Mabee, Associate Dean and Director (School of Policy Studies). “Our focus now is on refining processes identified through this work and continuing to strengthen relationships and communication between FAS units.”

Project 1: Refining Processes

Beginning in November, an audit team from the University Ombudsman’s Office will work collaboratively with staff to review and map key processes, identify gaps and areas for improvement, and provide standardized templates and recommendations to be adapted to individual department needs. Priorities based on staff feedback are:  

• Standardized hiring and onboarding checklists and guidelines for different types of staff/faculty positions
• Standardized provisioning checklists and guidelines for different types of staff roles
• Streamlined processes around Academic Change Forms and Grade Change Forms

Project 2: Communities of Practice (COP)

Communities of Practice - helping staff in similar roles to network, share ideas and best practices, resources, and expertise - will continue to be a priority, with a focus on strengthening existing COPs, exploring opportunities for new ones, and possibilities for cross-unit mentoring/onboarding support. The Research Administrators COP and FAS Communicators COP will also be surveyed this fall to provide feedback on what’s working well and where there’s room for improvement within their respective COPs.  

Project 3: FAS-wide Community Building

Based on recent staff recommendations around the need for faculty-wide community building, including between academic units and the Faculty Office, FAS will be exploring opportunities to:  

• Strengthen relationships and increase mutual accountability between Faculty Office units and academic departments (eg: similar to the existing FAS Finance support model).  
• Encourage cross-unit connections and information sharing, beginning with opportunities for department staff and Faculty Office staff to learn about each other’s work.
• Refine the format of FAS Administrators meetings to be more collaborative and interactive with intentional opportunities for community building and participant input.  

“As we shift our focus to the projects outlined above, we want to assure staff that we have also provided the FAS Budget Advisory Group with recommendations around staffing challenges, staff training, and community building based on input from the SEEES Advisory Group and the extensive consultation with staff, managers and department heads that has taken place over the past two plus years,” says Dr. Mabee. “Your input is invaluable and is always welcome.”

Some additional key outcomes from the SEEES Project have been:

• A new Faculty Office Training Series provided monthly training and development opportunities related to core Faculty Office functions (eg: HR, Finance, Marketing & Communications) for FAS staff (May 2022 – April 2023), which was developed in response to staff desire for enhanced training.
• The FAS Research Grants Coordinator position was updated to include dedicated research admin support for academic departments, as required, which was implemented as part of a series of Faculty Office recommendations.
• A new approach to integrated administrative staff support with Policy Studies and Political Studies was piloted in collaboration with department leaders.

If you have questions about the projects outlined above, please contact Maryanne Wainman, Project Manager, Organizational Design.